Dáil debates

Wednesday, 3 February 2021

Household Utility Bills Support: Motion [Private Members]

 

10:05 am

Photo of Mairead FarrellMairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I commend my colleague, Deputy Kerrane, on bringing this motion to the floor of the Dáil. It is a reasonable motion with practical solutions that would dramatically improve the lives of many. Fuel poverty means that people literally do not have the ability to afford to heat their homes for them and their families. Families choose between putting food on the table, heating their homes and paying bills. We have the fuel allowance but there is clear evidence that in its current form, it simply does not go far enough because despite this allowance, the reality is that many still cannot afford to meet their heating needs and in their absolute desperation, have to turn to charities, such as the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, that will pay for deliveries of oil or coal, or pay their electricity bills. This should not be happening. The State should ensure its citizens do not experience cold due to affordability. Heating is a basic need and it is life critical.

I spoke to one carer in Galway city who assists many elderly people across the city. The very difficult and upsetting reality is that a lot of elderly people to whom she calls stay in one room in the house, usually the kitchen, for the entirety of the day until they go to bed because they simply cannot afford to heat the rest of the house. I am sure we can all think of elderly friends, neighbours and relatives who do this. Even more shockingly, she told me that some elderly people stay in bed until the afternoon when the afternoon carer comes because they do not have the ability to keep the fire going all day. Some of them even decline to have a shower because the house is so cold. How horrendous is that? This has a knock-on effect because when people stay in bed it reduces their mobility and increases the chance of them getting sores.

It is not just the elderly that this is affecting. Another woman told me that she can pay for only one bag of coal a week, which means that she can only light the fire in the afternoon. As a result, at a time when we are asking people to stay at home, she wakes up in a cold house and she must wait in the cold until she can heat the house simply because she is on a low income. Another woman told me that this winter, for the very first time, she had to go to a moneylender to pay to heat her home.

We can do something about this by accepting the motion. It makes sense to extend the fuel allowance to PUP recipients. It also makes sense to suspend the requirement of being in receipt of jobseeker's payments for 15 months. In addition, it makes sense to make a double payment of the fuel allowance to all existing recipients for two weeks in February. Let us all come together and support Deputy Kerrane's motion and improve the lives of people in communities.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.